I suspect that one of my colleagues has an eating disorder and another suffers from exercise addiction. While I’m inclined to mind my own business, participants are starting to talk. Some of them are worried and asking me whether these instructors have a problem. Others comment on how great these instructors look and are asking me their “secret to success.” What do I do, if anything?

Kris Thomas, Rochester, Minnesota

Difficult as it may be, as fitness professionals we have a responsibility to address eating and exercise issues. Our actions (or inactions!) affect not only the instructors involved but also the
fitness team and our club members. If these instructors become ill or disabled as a result of their eating disorder or
exercise addiction, the fitness team will ultimately have to fill in. Meanwhile, members are confronted with unhealthy and unrealistic role models.

If you suspect that fellow instructors have a disorder but you want to be more sure before doing anything, look for clues. Do they teach a lot of classes? Do they offer or agree to sub often? Do they exercise often in addition to teaching almost every day? Do they exercise even when injured or ill?

If so, try talking to them in private. One approach is to come from the perspective of injury prevention. Share the signs you have observed—excessive teaching, subbing and exercising—and emphasize your concern that they are at risk for injury. Another option is to discuss the impact we as instructors have on our participants. Let your colleagues know you consider them professionals and that, as such, they are sure to care about the messages they are sending participants.

Meanwhile, continue to educate your participants, especially about realistic and unrealistic expectations. But do not use names or point out anyone as an example! Instead discuss general exercise benefits beyond physical appearance. Use your leadership role and knowledge to talk about the amount of exercise that is generally recommended for health or fitness.

I, myself, was once a compulsive exerciser with an eating disorder. So I know that one of the keys to recovery is to get the person to admit to having a problem. Help your colleagues recognize behaviors that are addictive or damaging. Make it clear that eating disorders and exercise addictions also affect the fitness team and facility members. The point is to help your colleagues see that their actions affect not just themselves but others as well.

If you are uncomfortable or unsure about initiating a direct discussion with the instructors, go to your director with your concerns. Fitness professionals have a responsibility to face unhealthy behaviors. Yet, for legal reasons, we must be careful how we tackle these problems, so talk to a person above you for advice. Then act on that advice. Your actions will make life better for your fellow teachers—maybe not immediately, but ultimately. Rest assured that you are supporting your team members, the team as a whole and the participants who rely on us to help them achieve true health and fitness. You have this obligation and this ability.

Carol Kennedy, Bloomington, Indiana

Good for you for not ignoring this difficult issue. People in our profession are at high risk for eating disorders and exercise addiction. Yet we must consider and conduct ourselves as role models of healthy behavior. Allowing instructors with eating disorders and/or exercise addiction to continue being role models actually exacerbates their problem. If you are truly concerned, I recommend some intervention on behalf of both your colleagues. Not intervening sends the wrong message.

You might choose to meet privately with each colleague and explain your concerns. Keep in mind that exercise
addicts and people with eating disorders are usually in denial. But even though they may not react in a positive way to intervention, calling attention to the problem is the first step toward finding
a solution. You need to be more concerned with your teammates’ health than with their response to your actions.

If you are not prepared to confront the instructors directly, do not keep your worries to yourself. Talk with your program director or manager. The director may (appropriately) decide to reduce the affected instructors’ classes or pull them altogether. In our program we have taken a few instructors with similar issues off the schedule. While the instructors were not happy about this initially, they all thanked us later and said this drastic step “helped them get better.” You can remind yourself that you are doing something positive for the health of everyone involved by having these instructors removed as health and fitness role models until they get help and truly are healthy.

Regardless of whether you approach the situation yourself or through your director, the key is to make sure these instructors get help. Ignoring the problem will not make it go away. In fact, the disorders will continue to worsen until someone like you cares enough to say something.

More Injury Prevention Advice

I am writing in response to the Problem Solver column titled “My Joints Want to Give Up, but I Don’t,” which appeared in the November-December 2000 issue of IDEA Fitness Edge. Although the three responses provided were excellent, I would like to offer another solution based on personal experience.

I am proud to say I began my 20-year career as an instructor when I was 40 years old, teaching all types of classes, including high-low impact and step. Several years into this career, I suffered injuries in a horrific auto accident, and 10 years later these injuries led to further health problems. At this point, I, too, began to look for alternative opportunities: training other instructors, teaching precertification exam classes, giving workshops and becoming a director. Meanwhile, I continued to teach but taught fewer classes.

However, the solution that combined my love of teaching with low stress on my joints really presented itself when another instructor suddenly left our area. I had to take over her older-adult class until I could find a replacement. In the process, I discovered the very fulfilling world of teaching seniors and decided to keep the class! If you are thinking older-adult classes are low-key or boring, think again. Today’s senior classes can be a blast!

Seniors grew up dancing and still adore it, but they are also open to other programs. Put your creativity to work on a senior circuits, chair aerobics or calisthenics class. You will extend your own career and stay fit for another 20 years—and your life will become incredibly rich with wonderful new friends who will love you dearly. Come on, instructors, catch the wave of the future. You will love it!

About the Author

Carol Kennedy, MS, is program director of fitness and wellness in the Division of Recreational Sports at Indiana University. A frequent IDEA presenter, she strives to reduce the incidence of eating an...